As a parent of a special needs child, I understand the challenges that come in trying to understand their world. From communicating to keeping a watchful eye, home automation technology is helping families care and provide for kids with special needs in more ways than ever before.ch 16, 2012. Now, who thinks Apple is still working on a TV?

With the help of a home automation Control 4 system, one family better communicates and cares for their son with Autism. As shown in the video below, home automation systems offer so much more than just lighting and climate control.

We give our thanks to Control 4 for providing such great products to help families unlock, understand and offer better quality of life for our children.

Consumer electronics is one of the fastest evolving segments in all of the electronics industry. The demand for thinner, light, higher resolution televisions with lightning-fast processors has created a new breed of displays.

If you consider how radically video technology has changed in the last 20 years alone, it should be no surprise that televisions are now living up to the futuristic movie scenes we all watched on the big screen.

So while the race for the thinnest display on the market has some people choosing form over function in terms of video quality, we suggest taking a more logical approach…

Television Lifts

Choose what all the videophiles have for years…Plasma. Just picture your plasma screen set it in motion with a popup or drop down lift, concealed in a custom piece of furniture for the ultimate in home technology. Cabinet Tronix offers a vast selection of traditional and contemporary cabinets that are transformed to house your flat screen television.

Just because you’re home from the office doesn’t mean you’re done with work for the day. Running a small business or private practice means you’ll need a dedicated space in your Woodlands, TX home for working on everything you need to wrap up a project or close a case. Smart home automation can transform a room in your house into a productive working environment by helping you stay connected with everything you’ll need. Take a look at how smart automation by Relative Home Systems can enhance your home office space.

Utilize Audio/Video for Telecommunications

Working from home doesn’t mean that you have to break off all communications with the outside world. Stay connected with the employees, co-workers and even overseas clients with a strong telecommunication system. See clearly with UHD cameras streaming pristine images to your 4K monitor or television. Hear everything with in-wall speakers throughout your office space, so you don’t have to be glued to your desk if you need to speak to someone. And when you’re on the go, have the video and audio streamed right to your tablet or smartphone.

Create an Automated Waiting Room

If you regularly have clients or patients coming to your house, you’ll need some way to address them when they arrive, and smart home automation offers a solution. An HD intercom will tell you exactly when they arrive and allow you to speak to them without even leaving your office. Combine your HD intercom with outdoor audio to stream music onto your porch, and turn it into a functioning waiting room. And unlock the door from your desk with an automated entry system to give yourself an added sense of security. With smart home automation, your clients and patients will be happier and safer when they visit your home office.

Looking to enhance your lifestyle? Do you feel as though your life looks like a coffee table lined with remotes? With home automation, tasks like controlling your thermostat, turning on and off lights, and managing a security system become integrated, personalized, and intuitive. Such systems allow you to entertain with ease, increase the efficiency of your home, and deliver peace of mind.

With Relative Home Systems, those in Houston and The Woodlands, are just one touch away from easily operating all of a home’s smart technology. Whether it’s new construction, a remodel, or a retrofit, we’ll help you determine the best solution for your space.

Integrated

Each of the electronic systems (heating/air conditioning, lighting, security, music) in your home can all be connected and managed by one central processor. With partners like Savant and Control4, Relative Home Systems, can accommodate all your automation needs. A fully programmed custom home automation system can supply information about the operational status of each device. Such an integrated system allows for meaningful reductions in energy use and utility costs.

Personalized

We invite you to visit this year’s Bellaire New Home Showcase. The showcase is Saturday, May 12, Sunday, May 13, Saturday, May 19, and Sunday, May 20, 2012.

Featuring homes from several of the top custom home builders in the Houston area, the craftsmanship and elegance of these homes is incredible.

We have had the pleasure for the last several years in partnering up with Bentley Custom Homes in providing the audio and video in their remarkable homes. We have installed a lavish theater room featuring an Epson 3D projector, Stewart Filmscreen 96″ projection screen with all equipment controlled with Control 4 at Bentley’s custom home at 5206 Willow.

For more information, go to http://www.bellairehomeshow.com/. The $10 admission benefits http://bellaireparks.org/.

We look forward to the opportunity of meeting you as we support these builders and the Patrons of Parks.

iPads are fully-capable wireless tablets, that not only run control system apps for your home, but can also control your home while you are there or away.

Most top manufacturers of residential control systems are offering iPad specific control apps that are capable of the following:

Lighting-Adjust your lights without leaving your favorite arm chair or your bed. You can adjust individual circuits or bring up global scenes.

Climate Control-Raise up the heat or bump the air down before leaving work and let your A/C go to work while you sit in traffic or run your afternoon errands. Your house will be ready when you return home.

Security-Remotely disarm your security system and then reset for your housekeeper or repair man.

Someday your floor could be the only security sensor you need for the home, if IBM moves ahead with a patent granted on March 20, “Securing premises using surfaced-based computing technology.”

The patent describes a multitouch floor that can determine who is in the house, and what they’re doing. The floor senses the shapes, weight and number of feet on the ground so it can distinguish between parents, kids, infants, pets … and unauthorized visitors.

From the patent:
The system takes different actions based upon identifying which object is in a particular location. For example, if the system senses that a small child is in an “off-limits” location, such as a swimming pool or hot tub area, the child’s caregiver can immediately be notified to prevent the child from getting hurt. Similarly, if the system senses that the family dog has entered an area that is off-limits, such as a living room or bedroom, actions can be taken accordingly. If the owner is home, the owner can be notified with an alert in order to remove the dog from the off-limits location. If no one is home, a high-pitched dog alarm can be sounded in order to have the dog retreat from the off-limits location.

Smart Floors and Eldercare

The smart floors also could determine the position and movement of the home’s occupants, which has tremendous implications for home health technology, aging in place and telemedicine. If a resident falls and does not get up in a certain amount of time, the floor – like any other security sensor – could send a message to the home alarm, home automation or PERS (personal emergency response system) device to alert a family member or monitoring station.

One problem with traditional PERS pendants and wearable fall-detection devices is that users take them off at night or before showering, and fail to put them on again.

A golf simulator from High Definition Golf™  can bring your favorite past time into your home. Check out this video from High Definition Golf™. It walks us through the technology behind the simulator from how the courses are laid out to the spin of your ball. The golf simulator can even analyze your swing.

Relative Home Systems can design and install a Golf Simulation room in your home. Whether it’s a dedicated golf room or combined with your home theater, playing golf anytime and in any weather is now within reach.